Electric lamp guard with adjustable reflector



May 29, 1951 M, FlKE 2,554,565

ELECTRIC LAMP GUARD WITH ADJUSTABLE REFLECTOR Filed April 22, 1949 IN VEN TOR.

5'5 Fiona M. F/KE,

fi izmwzmm 164M022 A T TOENEY-S".

Patented May 29, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ELECTRIC LAMP GUARD wrrn ADJUSTABLE REFLECTOR Floyd M-Eik rm a Tex- Appli cation AprilZZ, 1949, Serial No. 89,077

v2 a ms- This invention relates to protectors and guards for manually-handled trouble lights and the like, and particularly to a special electric lamp guard. The main object of my invention is to facilitate hooking an electric lamp on various objects and controlling the position of the lamp and a refiector included in the structure. Another object is to provide a lamp guard as indicated which may be manually operated in convenient manner for causing portions at the forward end of the guard to clamp upon a projecting object in order to locate the lamp in a I desired working position.

A further object is to have such a lamp guard provided with a reflector and means for manually retaining the guard in stationary position while allowing the reflector to be partly rotated to various positions in order to direct the light rays in a desired direction at will.

It is also an object to make a lamp guard of the type indicated in a rugged form capable of withstanding rough usage and to mount the reflector in a protected position within the guard, and in general so to construct the guard throughout that it will be a well equipped and serviceable device.

'Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear in further detail as the specification proceeds.

In order to facilitate ready comprehension of this invention for a proper appreciation of the salient features thereof, the invention is illustrated on the accompanying drawingforming part hereof, and in which:

Figurel is a side elevation of an electric lamp guard made according to the invention and embodying the same in a practical form';

Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of the same electric lamp guardasseen from below in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a longitudinal section taken on line 3 '-3 in Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an end elevation asseen from the left in- Figure 1.

Throughout the views, the same reference numerals indicate the same or like parts.

In work shops and particularly repair shops where automotive repairs are made, it is quite customary to use manually-handled trouble lights-especially when a workman gets down on acreeper and intends to inspect a car from beneath. When a workman is thus occupied, he usually finds it necessary to place the lamp involved on-the floor or precariously perch it on some jutting portion of a part beneath the .car e n ins ected a a ru h su fers fromtw disadvantages when thus using the trouble light. The first is that at any moment the lamp'may drop to'the floor or perhaps into his face, and the other is that the lamp usually shines directly in his eyes and largely prevents him from viewingthe parts to beinspected at any advantage. When atrouble lightis used which has a reflector substantially forming a part of the guard thereon, it is frequently diflicult to place the light in such a position that the reflected light will only be directed toward the parts to be inspected and-repaired, and if means are presentfor attaching the trouble light to any object under a car, the same-is usually limited to some position which nonetheless directs some of the light into the eyes of the mechanic, and thus trouble lights while necessary are coupled with disadvantages that amount to a problem apparently not yet solved by any means generally adopted.

Upon considering this problem, it has occurred tome that a trouble light should have a guard capable of being clamped upon some projecting object, a part of a fender or the head of a bolt, or any otheravailable means, and particularly should have a'refiector which is sufiiciently independent of the guard to allow the same to be directed in a desireddirection despite the position of the guard on the trouble light. As a result of'such consideration, I" have succeeded in producing a special lamp guard for a trouble light which will now-be more fully described.

- Hence, in the practice of my invention, and re-. ferring a ain to the drawing, an electric lamp guard-generally indicated at 5, is mounted on a more or less conventional handle 6 preferably made of rubber or plastic, with a rearwardly-extending hollow handle portion 1 by which said handle member as a whole may be manipulated and into which a cable extends at 8 adapted for connection to a current source. On the forward end of handle 6 is a socket 9 into which a lamp bulb I 0 is screwed in a conventional manner, the current from cable ll-being controlled by a switch having the two end buttons II and I2 within the guards I3 and M for protecting the buttons involved. The handle also is provided with a projecting outlet l5 by which connection may be made to a further extension or additional light, if desired. The main intermediate portion 6 ofthe handle which carries the guards I3 and I4 and the button members H and I2 forming the switch, as well as outlet I5, is of greater transverse dimension-than'the diameterof the forwardly-extending socket .9 or I the rearwardly- I6 of socket 9.

extending relatively narrower handle I. Thus far described, the handle with the switches and socket with the lamp therein, while entirely conventional, nonetheless form the basis for applying the guard of the invention thereto.

Upon the rear cylindrical portion I6 of socket 9 is fixedly mounted a rear split ring I I of a forwardly-extending concave reflector l8 which normally covers the upper half of the light bulb I longitudinally considered. The split ring or collar I1 is formed at the lower end thereof with inturned or upwardly-directed teeth [9 embedded in the outer rubber wall of the cylindrical portion As reflector I8 is thus retained upon the socket against rotation relative to handle 6, the handle portion I maythus be used to turn or direct the reflector 18 in any desired direction, as will also develop more fully from the following.

An upper half-guard frame 29 includes a plurality of generally arcuate and forwardly-extending frame members 2| and 22, the central frame member 23 and two side members 24 and 25 which are united at the forward end 26 forming a jaw having downwardly-directed teeth2I, the upper jaw or guard member intermediate the ends thereof having an inner semi-circular reinforcing frame or ring 28, and immediately outside the latter the upper half of the rectangular frame formed by sides 29 and 39 and top 3 I. The mentioned vertical sides 29 and 30 and the upper horizontal portion 3I are attached to the semicircular ring 28 at the tangent points adjacent to the side members 24 and 25 and the upper central guard member 23, thus forming a strong reinforcement about the lamp II] as well as refiector I 8. Rearwardly the various arcuate guard members 2| to 25 are joined to semicircular or arcuate shoulder 32 integral with the reduced semicircular shell or half-ring 33 conforming to and fitting upon the rear ring mounting l I of reflector I8, and at the sides provided with a pair of lugs 34 (one shown in Figure 1). Upon the rear split ring I! of reflector I8 is mounted a bottom half-ring or co lar 35 having a pair of upper horizontal lugs 36 and 31 mating with lugs 34 and secured thereto by means of screws 38 and 39 in such fashion that the resulting annulus is rotatable upon ring [1. From the lower semicircular collar member 35 just described extends a rear reinforcing member 40 which a short distance exteriorly of the intermediate handle portion 6 is bent rearwardly to form a spaced longitudinal intermediate section 4| which rearwardly of the intermediate section 6 of the handle is inclined upwardly at 42 toward the rear handle portion I and then directed rearwardly substantially in parallelism to and in contact with the mentioned handle portion I along the rear end 43 of said reinforcing member. The purpose of the mentioned reinforcing member will presently be disclosed in connection with the description and operation of the lower jaw or guard portion which completes the guard structure as a whole.

Upon the rear portions of the side members 24 and 25 which forwardly form the jaw 26, a pair of depending lugs 44 and 45 are provided forwardly of the side lugs 36 and 31, having vertically-elongated pivot slots 46 and 4! into which project'a pair of 'pivot pins or pintles 48 and 49 directed inwardly toward each other and mounted upon the upper forward lugs 50 and 5| integral with a rearwardly extending handle 52 spaced exteriorly of the intermediate handle portion 6 and the rear handle member I.

However, exteriorly of the upwardly-projecting forward lugs 50 and 5| of handle 52, the pivot pins 48 and 49 extend through the upper rear corners of a lower jaw 53, that is through the rear ends of the side members 54 and 55 of said jaw member. The latter has a row of teeth 56 cooperating with the previously-mentioned teeth 21 of the upper jaw 26, and in similar fashion with the upper guard 20 forming a lower halfguard 5! including a forwardly-directed arcuate intermediate member 58, a pair of further members 59 and 60, an enveloping semicircular ring portion 6| and the lower half of the rectangular frame including the sides 62 and 63, and a horizontal bottom frame member 64 exteriorly secured upon the ring portion 61 at the side tangent points and the bottom where the side members 54 and 55 and the lower intermediate member 58 merge with the mentioned ring portion 6!. Rearwardly the mentioned side members 54 and 55 of jaw 53 as well as the rear ends of frame members 58,59 and merge with the semicircular end portion 65 enveloping the forward end of handle On the intermediate portion of the rear semicircular ring or frame member 65 and at both sides of the forwardly-extending intermediate frame member 58 a pair of downwardly-directed hooked lugs 66 upon the forward end of handle 52 engage in such fashion as to be capable of causing the entire lower. half 51 of the guard to pivot downwardly on pivot pins 48 and 49 when handle 52 is manually shifted upwardly toward the handle portion I, the mentioned handle or lever 52 pivoting upon the same pivot pins so that for all practical purposes this lever and the lower guard 51 including jaw 53 with its teeth 56 form a pivoting unit operated by the mentioned lever. In order to maintain the two guard members 28 and 51, and particularly the jaws 26 and 53 thereof engaged and otherwise bias them toward each other in such fashion that the teeth 21 and 56 thereof may engage upon some object serving to support the guard and the lamp as a whole, both the central forwardly-extending upper and lower members 23 and 58 of the upper and lower half-guards are provided at the forward portions thereof with a pair of corresponding notch portions 61 and 68, respectively, virtually formin inwardlyarched recess members between which is mounted a helical tension spring 69 in such fashion as to apply closing tension directly to said recess members.

The arrangement is such that when the trouble light comprising the entire assembly heretofore described is to be used, it being assumed that cable 8 is connected to a source of current, pressing the proper button II or I2 for turning the current on to energize lamp in, will cause the lamp to be instantly ready for use. Then seizing the handle portion I and also clasping lever 52 with the hand, lever 52 is squeezed, opening the lower jaw 53 and thus separating the forward portion of the lower half-guard 5'! from the upper half-guard 20 sufliciently to allow the teeth 21 and 56 of the two jaws 26 and 53 to bite upon the edge of a fender or the end of a bolt or the head of a screw or the like, the reinforcing member 43 in the meantime preventing handle portion I from bending and thus forming a reinforcement for the same. When the object upon which the guard 5 as a whole is to be attached is properly engaged by the jaws, the handle or lever 52 is released and spring 69 will hold the jaws clamped upon the mentioned object or projection thereof. However, when the device is thus mounted, it is very likely that the reflector I8 is disposed in some position in which the light is allowed to shine into the eyes of the mechanic using the trouble light, and if so, it is a simple matter for him to seize the handle portion 1 between the fingers and rotate the same which simultaneously r0- tates the reflector until the latter conceals the lamp H! from the eyes of the mechanic and directs the light in the proper direction at the object or part which is to be attended to, so that it becomes properly illuminated. Due to the spaced position of the longitudinal section 4| of reinforcing member 43, the intermediate handle portion 6 with its guards I3 and I4, switch buttons II and I2, as well as outlet [5, will clear the reinforcement member during such turning of handle member 1. Such turning movement is thus possible due to the mounting of reinforcin member 43 and its forwardlylocated semicircular ring portion 35 connected to the rear semicircular ring portion 33 of upper half-guard 28 integral with the upper jaw 26 being rotatably mounted on split collar I! formin the rear end of reflector 18. This construction allows the reflector to be turned in any position desired irrespective of the position in which the guard as a whole is clamped upon the object from which it is suspended, and simultaneously the guard protects the reflector so that it is not exposed to damage, but disposed with lamp l 6 within the guard.

The device thus far described need not necessarily be attached to any projecting member, but if laid down on the floor or upon a bench or the like, the substantially rectangular frame formed by the upper horizontal member 3i, the bottom horizontal member 64, the sides 29 and 52 on the one hand and the sides 39 and 63 on the other hand allowing the lamp to be laid in any one of four positions without danger of rolling or displacement from a position in which it has been put by the mechanic using the same.

The guard as a whole may be made of plastic or metal or any suitable material desired which will serve the purpose and hold its shape.

Manifestly, variations may be resorted to and parts and features may be modified or used without others within the scope of the appended claims.

Having now fully described my invention, I claim:

1. The combination with a portable electric light including a socket having a bulb in one end and a handle secured to the other end thereof, of a reflector extending from said socket toward said bulb and partially enclosing the lat ter, means secured to the end of said reflector adjacent said socket for fixedly securing said reflector to the latter, a first guard frame extending from said socket toward said bulb and par-- tially enclosing the latter, a second guard frame arranged in a mating relation with respect to said flrst frame and enclosing the remaining portion of said bulb, the ends of said frames adjacent said socket being pivotally interconnected and operatively mounted on said means for rotatable movement relative to the latter, resilient means connecting the opposite ends of said frames together for normally urging the latter toward each other, and a handle operatively attached to one of said guard frames adj acent said socket for selectively causing divergent and convergent movements of said opposite ends relative to each other.

2. The combination with a portable electric light including a socket having a bulb in one end and a handle secured to the other end thereof, of a reflector extending from said socket toward said bulb and partially enclosing the latter, means secured to the end of said reflector adjacent said socket for fixedly securing said reflector to the latter, a first guard frame extending from said socket toward said bulb and partially enclosing the latter, a second guard frame arranged in a mating relation with respect to said first frame and enclosing the remaining portion of said bulb, said means including a split ring circumposing said socket and having inwardly turned teeth for engagement with the latter, the ends of said frames adjacent said socket being pivotally interconnected and operatively mounted on said ring for rotatable movement relative to the latter, resilient means connecting the opposite ends of said frames together for normally urging the latter toward each other, and a handle operatively attached to one of said guard frames adjacent said socket for selectively causing divergent and convergent movements of said opposite ends relative to each other.

FLOYD M. FIKE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,692,892 Floyd Nov. 27, 1928 2,245,686 Kollath June 1'7, 1941 2,448,582 Fike Sept. 7, 1948 

